1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a temperature control apparatus for an endoscope, the temperature control apparatus controlling a temperature of a distal end of the endoscope.
2. Description of the Related Art
In recent years, endoscope apparatuses have been used in various fields such as, for example, a medical field and an industrial field. In the medical field, endoscope apparatuses are used for, for example, observation of an organ in a body cavity, a therapeutic treatment using a treatment instrument and surgical procedures under endoscopic observation.
In such medical field, an endoscope is inserted into the inside of a body, which has a temperature equal to a body temperature and is a highly humid environment. When an endoscope is inserted into such environment, fogging of a cover glass arranged at a distal end portion of the endoscope may occur. In order to prevent such fogging, it is necessary to heat up the cover glass before the cover glass is inserted into a body, which is inconvenient.
Therefore, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open Publication No. 2007-175230 discloses an apparatus that heats up a cover glass at a distal end of an endoscope by means of a heater, and controls the heater by means of a temperature sensor that detects a temperature of the cover glass, to perform temperature control.